Sawmill set-works.



PATENTED OCT. 29. 1907.

A. CUNNINGHAM. SAWMILL SET WORKS.

APPLIUATION FILED JAN}, 1904.

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APPLICATION FILED JAILZ, 1904.

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PATENTED OCT. 29. 1907.

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APPLICATION FILED JAILZ, 1904.

' PATENTED OCT. 29, 1907.

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A. CUNNINGHAM. SAWMILL SET WORKS.

PATENTED 00,129. 1907.

APPLICATION TILED JAKE, 1904.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT CUNNINGHAM, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO THE FIBER ANDSTOWELL COMPANY, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF WISCONSIN.

SAWMILL SET-WORKS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 29, 1907.

Application filed January 2, 1904:. Serial No. 187,397.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT CUNNINGHAM, a citizen of the United States,residing at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State ofWisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in SawmillSet-Works, of which the following is a specification, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawing, forming a part thereof.

This invention relates particularly to power setworks for saw-millcarriages. Its main objects are to prevent overthrow of the knees andsecure accurate setting under varying conditions without loss of time,to provide for manually adjusting the knees without operating ordisconnecting the motor, and generally to improve the construction andoperation of set-works ofthis class.

It consists in certain novel features of construction and in thepeculiar arrangement and combinations of parts or of their equivalentsas hereinafter particularly described and defined in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawing like characters designate the same parts inthe several figures.

Figure l is a side elevation of saw-mill set-works embodying myimprovements, the rocker an d set shafts being shown in cross section onthe line 1 1, Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the set-works, parts ofwhich are broken away and shown in section; Fig. 3 is a verticallongitudinal section of the motor and cushion cylinders; Fig. 4 is asection on the line 44, Fig. 2, showing in detail the adjustable stoplever, the valve operating lever and their connections, and theadjustable driving corrnection of the rocker shaft; Fig. 5 is a detailsectional view taken in a plane lengthwise of the rocker shaft, showingthe adjustable connection between the rocker shaft and its drivingpinion; Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view of the motor valve taken in aplane lengthwise of the valve stem and crosswise of the piston rod; andFig. 7 is an enlarged cross section on the line 7 7, Fig. 3.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, a designates the set shaft,which is provided with a ratchet wheel b, and is connected with theknees or standards on the head blocks in the usual or any suitable way.

c is a rocker shaft parallel with the set shaft and provided withoppositely projecting crank arms (I and a crank arm d, which are keyedor otherwise fastened thereon' The crank arms d are connected by linkswith pawl carriers 6, which are loosely sleeved on the set shaft and areprovided with pawls adapted to engage with the ratchet wheel and to turnthe set shaft forward, thereby advancing the knees in the usual way. Oneof said links is composed of two members f and g, which are pivotallyconnected with each other and corrstitute a toggle lever for manuallyoperating the set works. The member 9 is extended beyond its pivot vals.The member 9 is normally locked to the member I f by a spring actuatedlatch h, and when the two members are thus locked together, theyconstitute in effect a simple link connection between the crank arm andpawl carrier.

1' is the motor cylinder which may be conveniently cast with a base forattaching it to the carriage, and with an extension lorming a guide 9'for the piston rod, and a head I: for the cushion cylinder.

Z is the cushion cylinder, which is fitted and adjustable cndwise uponthe head It, and is formed or provided with a head having a centralexternally flanged opening through it.

or is the motor piston which is connected by a rod passing through astuffing box in the irmcrhcad of the motor cylinder with a rack 1r,fitted in the guidej.

o is the cushion piston which is formed or provided with a tubular rodp, fitted and guided in the openings in the cylinder heads and attachedat one end to the rack n. The rod p is open at its outer end to theatmosphere, and has one or more lateral ports (1 on each side of thepiston 0, which has a restricted opening or passage 1- through it. Themotor and cushion pistons are provided with suitable packing and thestationary head I; of the cushion cylinder is also provided with packingto form a fluid Light joint between it and said cylinder.

s is a segmental pinion meshing with the rack 71. and formed with a longhub which is provided with bearings in the under side of the guide j andis loosely mounted on a reduced extension of the rocker shaft 0. At oneend the hub of said pinion is formed or provided with crank t. which hasa flat faced stud projecting laterally therefrom and adj usiably securedin an opening of the adjacent crank arm d by opposing set screws u, asshown most clearly in Figs. 4. and 5.

o is a hollow rotary valve fitted in a transverse cylindrical chamberwhich may be formed in the base or extension of the motor cylinderadjacent to its inner head, and is connected by ports or passages w and.c, with op posite ends of said cylinder. The valve is formed in oneside with a port 1 communicating through an axial passage with the steamor motive fluid supply pipe z, and adapted to register with one or theother of the ports or passages 10 and :c. In its opposite side the valveis formed with a cavity 2, corresponding in area with the port y andconnected with the axial passage in the valve. The valve chamber isformed diametrically opposite the ports or passages to and :c withcavities 3 3, of corresponding area, as shown in Figs. 3 and (S.

4 is the exhaust pipe connected by a branching passage 5 with cavities Gin the opposite sides of the valve.

At the end opposite the supply pipe z, a stem 7 is connected with thevalve, as shown in Fig. 6, and on the outer end of this stem is iiXed anarm 8. A lever 9, loosely sleeved on the rocker shaft 0, is provided onthe opposite side with jaws engaging a roller on the arm 8. To thislever is pivoted a rod 10, passing loosely through a sleeve 11 swiveledto one side of the motor cylinder 11, as shown in Figs. 4 and 6, andbetween collars on said rod and opposite ends of the sleeve 11, areinterposed springs l2.

13 is a quadrant bolted to the upper side of the guide j between themotor and cushion cylinders. It is provided with a notched are 14,adjustable errdwise thereon and secured at its ends to upturned ears onthe quadrant by screws 15.

16 is a forked lever straddling the quadrant and fulcrurrred below therack n. It is connected on each side above its l'ulcrurn by links 17.with the cushion cylinder Z, and it is provided with a spring actuatedde tent 18 for locking it in different positions to the are 14. A handgrip lever 19, connected with said detent, serves to withdraw it fromengagement with the are 14. The are 14 is formed with a longitudinalgroove in its toothed face and in this groove may be inserted a bridgepiece 20, as shown in Figs. 3 and 7, to span any desired number ofnotches in any part of the arc. A sufliciently tight [it is made to holdthe bridge piece in place in the groove.

My improved set-works operates as follows: The stop lever or arm 16being set and locked tothe graduated are 14 of the quadrantin positionto advance the knees the proper distance for sawing lumber of thedesired dimension, and the parts of the set-works being in the positionsin which they are illustrated in the drawing, the lever 9 is pulledbythe setter backward or to the left, as seen in Figs. 1 and 3. This turnsthe valve '1 to the right, carrying its supply port y into register withthe port or passage w. The cavity 2 opposite the port y being constantlysupplied with steam or other motive fluid through its connection withthe interior of the valve, balances the valve when it is closed maintaining a close fit between it and its seat next to the ports 10 and Theabove mentioned movement. of the valve establishing communicationbetween the ports w and y at the same time establishes communicationbetween the cavity 2 and the cavity 3, opposite the port 10, therebypreser'ving the balance of the valve and maintaining a close fit betweenits working face and seat. Steam or other motive fluid being thusadmitted to the cylinder 2' in front of the piston in, moves said pistonbackward, turning the rocker shaft 0 to the left and swinging one pawlcarrier 6 forward and the other backward a distance corresponding withthe position of the stop lever 16 and of the cushion cylinder l. Theports in the valve and in the valve chamber and the faces of the valveand valve seat are so proportioned and disposed that steam or othermotive fluid is admitted to one end of the cylinder a little in ad vanceof its being exhausted from the opposite end of the cylinder. Thiscauses the piston to start gradually without shock to the settingmechanism. As the cushion piston 0 approaches the adjustable head of thecushion cylinder and. the corresponding port q passes into and is closedby said head, the free escape of air from that end of the cylinder iscut off and the corrfined therein is compressed more or less accordingto the speed of the piston, which is thus checked in its movement andbrought to a gradual stop. The piston is permitted to come to a deadstop against the cylinder head by the flow of air through the restrictedpassage 1" from one side of the piston to the other. The setter thenreverses the valve r by turning the lever 9 back to the right. Thisadmits steam or other motive fluid to the back end of the cylinder ithrough the port It, while the other end of said cylinder is opened toexhaustthrough the port or passage w. -The piston m is thererrpon drivenback to its initial position, in which it is shown in Fig. 3, turningthe rocker shaft 0 back to the right and swingingthe pawl carriers backto their original positions. As the cushion piston 0 approaches thefixed head is of the cushion cylinder its movement is checked by the airconfined in that end of the cylinder when the corresponding port (1passes into and is closed by the cylinder head. The confined airescaping through the restricted passage 1" into the other end of thecylinder, allows the piston to gradually come to a dead stop against thecylinder head 7c without shock.

Each of the pawl carriers makes a complete forward and backward movementto each backward and return movement of the motor piston m and turns theratchet wheel I) a distance corresponding withthe-position of the lever16 and cushion cylinder Z, which determines with. accuracy and certaintythe limit or extent of movement of the pawl carriers and hence theadvance of the knees. The cushion produced by the confined air in theends of the cushion cylinder causes the motor piston and hence the pawlcarriers to come to a gradual stop in both directions, whatever theextent of movement of the motor piston may be, and the heads of thecushion cylinder exactly determinethe limits of such movement, therebypreventing overthrow ofthe knees and inaccuracy in setting. The morerapid the movement of the motor piston and the greater the momentum ofthe moving parts of the setting mechanism, the greater will bethecompression of air in the ends of the cushion cylinder, which operateswith certainty under varying conditions of power, speed and load, independently of the'motive fluid, which cannot be depended upon undervarying pressure and conditions to properly cushion and check themovement of the motor piston. When the lever 9 has been turned in eitherdirection sufficiently'to slightly open the valve port 3 into either ofthe ports 10 and x, one of the springs 12 takes effect and opposes agradually increasing resistance to its further movement. By this meansthe setter is enabled to determine according to the force he applies tosaid lever, the power applied to the operation of the set-works and'thusto more certainly regulate and control the operation of the set Worksaccording to varying conditions.

When the set-works is used for sawing certain dimensions of lumber it isoften desirable to close some of the notches in the graduated are 14, toprevent thedetent To take up playand wear in the setting mechanism andto compensate for any inaccuracy in fitting, and at the same time tocause the pawls oi the back carrier to properly engage with the teeth01' the ratchet wheel Without too much or too little play, .theadjustable con nection between the rocker shalt c and the pinion s isprovided.

By means of the screws n the pawls oi the back carrier may be slightlyadvanced or withdrawn to properly engage the teeth of the ratchet wheelwhen the motor and cushion pistons are at rest in their initial or homepositions. On the other hand, to adjust the pawls of the other pawlcarrier to properly engage in like mannor with the teeth of the ratchetwheel when the cushion piston 0 is against its back stop, the positionof which is determined by the notched are 14 and the stop lever 16, saidare is adjusted endwise on the quadrant by means of the screws 15.

One or more ports may be provided in the tubular rod of the cushionpiston on each side thereoi, and these ports may be made of any desiredarea and disposed in different ways, and the passage through said pistonmay be varied in form and position according to the requirements of thecase In short, various changes in the details of construction andarrangement of parts of the set-works may be made without departing [mmthe principle and intended scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. In saw-mill set-works the combination with the set shaft and a motorcylinder and piston for actuating said shaft, of a cushion cylinder, acushion piston attached to the motor piston rod, and means for varyingthe distance between the cushion piston and one of the cushion cylinderheads, substantially as described.

In saw-mill set-works the combination with the set shaft and a motor.cylinder and piston [or actuating said shaft, of a cushion cylinderhaving an axially adjustable head and a cushion piston fitted in thecushion cylinder and attached to the motor piston, substantially asdescribed.

3. ln saw-mill sct-w0rks the combination with the set shaft and a motorcylinder and piston for actuating said shaft, or a cushion cylinderadjustable in length and a cushion piston having a tubular rod attachedto the motor piston and provided with ports arranged on opposite sidesof the cushion piston in position to be closed by their passage into thecushion cylinder heads, substantially as described.

-t. In sawanill set-works the combination with the set shaft and a motorcylinder and piston for actuating said shaft, or a cushion pistonattached to the motor piston, and a cushion cylinder having a stationaryhead on which it is adjustable endwise to vary the stroke of saidpistons, substantially as described.

5. In saw-mill set-works the combination with the set shaft and a motorcylinder and piston for actuating said shaft, of a cushion cylinderarranged coaxial with the inoior cylinder and having one of its headsstationary and the other adjustable to vary the length of the cylinderchamber, and a cushion piston attached to the motor piston rod andhaving a tubular rod passing through the cushion piston heads and opento the atmosphere, lateral ports being provided in said tubular rod, oneor more on each side oi the cushion piston, substantially as described.

6. In sawmill set-works the combination with the set shaft and a motorcylinder and piston [or actuating said shaft, of a cushion cylinderhaving one head adjustable towards and [ram the other, a graduatedquadrant and a levcr connected with the adjustable head of the cushioncylindcr and adapted to be secured in dillferent positions to saidquadrant. and a cushion piston attached to the motor piston,substantially as described 7. in saw-mill set-worl s the combinationwith the set shaft and a motor cylinder and pislon [or actuating saidshaft, of a cushion cylinder having a lixcd head upon which it with itsother head is adjustable lengtlnvisc, a cushion piston attached to themotor piston, a forked lever connected with opposite sides of saidcushion cylinder, and a graduated quadrant to which said lever isadapted to be secured in different positions, substantially asdescribed.

S. in saw-mill sot-works the combination with the set shaft and a motorcylinder and piston i'or actuating said shaft, of a cushion cylinderhaving openings through its heads, one of which is movable towards andfrom the other, a cushion piston having a restricted passage through it,and a tubular rod fitted in said openings and provided with portsarranged on opposite sides of and at a distance from the piston inpositions to be closed by their passage into the cylinder heads, andmeans for adjusting the movable cylinder head, substantially asdescribed.

1). In saw-mill sot-works the combination with the set shal't providedwith a ratchet wheel, a pawl carrier provided with a pawl arranged toengage the teeth of the ratchet wheel, a rocker shaft, and a motorconnected with the rocker shaft, of a jointed link connecting an arm 01'the rocker shaft with the pawl carrier and serving to transmit motion-lrom the motor to the set shaft and affording means for manuallyturning the set shat't when the motor is at rest, substantially asdescribed.

10. In saw-mill set-works the combination with the set shalt providedwith a ratchet wheel, a pawl carrier provided with a pawladaptod toengage the teeth of the ratchet wheel, a rocker shal't and a motorconnected with and arranged to oscillate the rocker shaft, of a linkcoiliposcd of two pivotally connected members connecting an arm on therocker shaft with the pawl carrier, one or said members being extendedbeyond its pivot connection with the other and constituting a handle formanually turning the scat shaft, and means for locking said memberstogother, substantially as described.

In witness whereof, I hereto allix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

Cnas. L. Goss, ELINOR V. Wnien'r.

